A Duffield butchers has been blasted by vegans after a “tongue-in-cheek” advert poked fun at their eco-friendly diet.

Anthony Andrew Traditional Butchers in King Street has been criticised after an ill-advised advertising board read: “Dear vegans, we have the cow that’s been eating all your grass. You're welcome.”

The backlash only came to light after a post, put on social media, called out the butcher for alienating potential customers.

It read: “Dear Anthony Andrews, when I saw the title of your board I was excited at what you might be offering; what a disappointment it was to then read this message and find you offering only hostility and bad grammar. Tip: don't alienate potential customers. You're welcome.”

Anthony Griffiths, owner of the shop, has said that the ad was just “a bit of fun” and he meant no harm by it.

He said: “We are well-known for our silly adverts and our videos we post online – it’s all a bit of fun. There was no offence meant by them, we just like to have a good time and lighten the mood.

“We have signs up about vegetarians, but I guess some people are more sensitive than others.

“All we do is try and do our best every day.”

Anthony Griffiths, owner of King Street shop, has told Derbyshire Live that the advert was just “a bit of fun” and meant no harm by it.

The butcher also said that the person who posted the comment online could come into the store and have a free steak on the house.

He added: “I use local farmers and I’m quality assured, so all the meats come from RSPCA approved farms. I always say to my customers that I would be the worst farmer in the world. I wouldn’t send any of the animals to slaughter and they would all live in the house with me.

The store has a number of other “tongue-in-cheek” signs inside.

“If I did upset the person, then I do apologise and they can come in and I’ll get them a couple of fillet steaks to go.”

Dominika Piasecka, a spokeswoman for The Vegan Society, has said the advert was in bad taste but, on the plus side, could cause more people to go vegan.

She said: “The number of vegans has quadrupled in the last four years alone and it’s obvious that the meat, dairy and egg industries are becoming worried and resorting to adverts like this.